Founded 1933 The Marin Amateur Radio Society Monthly Newsletter August 2008 Page 1 Greetings from the desk of the Pres. Website at W6SG.NET P.O.Box 6423 Phone 415.389.6630 San Rafael, CA 94903 Boy, we're deep in the middle of 2008 For ARRL SF Section news, go to aren't we? High "summer tides", vaca- www.arrl.org/sections/?sect=SF From column two. tions, back to school shopping, enroll- One thing that will affect us next year is that ing in "continuing adult education" fall we’ll probably move Net Control into the semester. The matching funds drive total trailer to control interruptions from the public I've finally gotten serious about has, so far, reached better than the and divert them to a real information booth. learning electronics. My private tutor halfway point to the $1,000 Pan Toll Ranger Station would then not be has assigned my homework, and I am used. We’ll have to set up at the trailer and currently reading “Electronics for Eve- pledged by an unnamed member. test it before the race. The designated runner ryone” by Munroe Upton. Mr. Upton Please send your checks to may need to be accompanied by a ham opera- uses humor and analogy to get the MARS, POBox 6423, San Rafael, tor. point across, and it appears to be 94903. Technical committee: 4-Cs (Contra Costa working! My instructor also has Check out issue #5 of The Way- Communications Club) has been using the planned a lab curriculum and, as soon back Machine on page 3. The Tam repeater happily. (Their repeater was as I am ready, I will be building cir- rendered unusable by copper wire-stealing beginning of broadcasting, cuits. I'll gratefully accept any soldering b——–ds. ed.) tips you might care to share. mostly by amateurs. Comm truck: Aux. generator needs work I'm sure you've seen our Field Day but our stand-alone 5KW gen works fine. We score by now. Nice job! Thanks again Board of Directors Meeting ran it 24 hours during Field Day. to everyone who participated. The 10 July 2008 Education: Nothing going on. Randy has same venue has been reserved for Call to order: 7:34, with a rap of the had some inquiries. 2009 for another joint event with Squirt can. Agenda approved. Minutes VE Coordinator: Saturday 7/12 is the next REDXA. of June 12 meeting passed w/o objection. exam, five people are coming so far. Time is The signal reports from KPH's Night Committee Reports 0900. of Nights are rolling in. I’ve received Communications: Marin County Liaison for RACES: Next about 50 of them already. Our ARRL County of Marin wants to use clubhouse quarterly meeting: 7/26, room 266 at Marin section chief Bill Hillendahl KH6GJV for a polling place in 2009: March 3, OES. was a surprise guest at the event. June 2, and Nov. 3. We get $75.00 a Building managers: Rich W6UDS will call The club needs a chairman for the shot. Passed w/o objection. the plumber Elisabeth’s landlord recom- Activities Committee and volunteers Treasurer’s report: Total income: mended and get an estimate for obtaining a for the MARC/MARS 75th anniversary $2,250.00; total expenses: $ 613.38. video diagnosis. Rich also has plans to do event in Sept. Please contact me or a Dave is transferring bill paying to more electrical work. board member if you have some spare online—one benefit is that PG&E now Field Day debriefing: We accrued about time you can give to the club. gives us a June-June power use chart. 3,500 contacts, for about 8,000 points. The Hope you all enjoyed a month's Chet Rice sent a $100 contribution. break from the club house meetings. Rod and Gun Club was pleased with our Membership: We welcome Richard We're back on schedule now and I comportment and welcomes us back, so we Skaff KI6RIQ as a new member. (Also hope we’ll see many of you at the Au- already have an “in” for next year. RedX Mike Sterling KI6OON.ed.) gust 1st. meeting at the clubhouse. also wants to continue the association. Recreation committee: Needs a chair- As always, your suggestions and Marilyn may be willing to present a video person. Will open it up to the general ideas for the club are important to its she compiled of Field Day, maybe for the membership. success. The board of directors needs next general meeting on August 1. your input. Do you have an idea for a Public service: Marin Century is com- Old Business guest speaker at a monthly meeting? ing up August 2, Holstein is two weeks Fundraising for building maintenance: Not A color scheme for the new kitchen later, both need more volunteers. Peak much response. Also see under “new busi- cabinets? Speak up folks, this is your Hike is coming in September, has re- ness.” However our matching funds program club and I remain your humble servant, quested course sweeps. Doug KF6AKU has exceeded the halfway point. 73/88 reports that he got invited to the Dipsea Prescriptive easement: Doug will get to it. Denice Stoops, President. Operations meeting with State parks and 75th anniversary event: Still needs a chair. others to go over pluses and minuses. That’s a Recreation Committee chair respon- Column Three. sibility. Page two, column three. Page 2 “We’re typical hams, with the usual complement of redeeming idiosyncrasies.” K1NSS QSA-5 K6GWE Repeaters An Amish farmer walking through his Chairman for Recreation Committee: Still . Big Rock Ridge 147.330 + field, notices a man drinking from his pond. need one. 2 meters INPUTS The Amish farmer shouts: New Business pl 203.5 Big Rock 'Trink das wasser nicht. Die kuhen haben Dave KG6TCJ has volunteered to go to pl 179.9 Mt. Tam west dahin gesheissen.' Home Depot and get some estimates for pl 167.9 Mt. Barnabe (This means: Don’t drink the water; the new cabinets for the kitchen. Phil will send pl 192.8 Tiburon cows have sh*t in it.) Dave some measurements. Mt. Tamalpais 146.700 - The man shouts back: 'I'm a ______, (fill in Discussion of possi ble presentations— pl 179.9 Mt. Tam input the blank.) I don't understand. Please speak Several ideas, nothing definite. John sug- San Pedro Ridge 147.330 + in English.' gests one of our public service recipients pl 173.8 off-line - reserve status. The Amish farmer says: 'Use two hands, give a presentation that might encourage you'll get more. 440 more members to participate. San Pedro Ridge Jamming of repeaters: Intentional jam- From the ‘net. 443.525 + pl 82.5 ming of the 147.330 repeater on June 21 Greetings, Mt.Tamalpais repeatedly interfered with radio communi- This mornings newspaper the Halifax 443.250 + pl 179.9 cations for the Double Dipsea. The jammer Chronicle Herald, has an article stating played commercial radio advertisements for that today the 1st of July 2008, is the Here’s the MARS Calendar of prolonged periods and impeded health & 100th anniversary of the international Public Service Events for 2008 welfare traffic. There is radio community's acceptance of the Morse What’s left: “fingerprinting” equipment available, but SOS symbol replacing CQD. using it is labor intensive, and identifying Martin/VE1AUA Saturday, August 02 - Marin Cen- anyone depends partly on luck. We need to tury / Mt. Tam Double Century 4AM - 7/1/08 remind people at the general meeting not to Midnight 20+ Volunteers To me it looks like Halifax Chronicle answer or acknowledge anyone who jams Herald is trying to rewrite history. In our equipment, no matter how frustrated we Saturday, August 16 - Holstein Hun- front of me I have a reprint copy of may feel, because causing frustration is how dred 6AM-7PM 15+ Volunteers CONVENTION RADIOTELEGRAPHI- these people get their jollies. Just pretend QUE INTERNATIONAL from the Inter- you haven’t noticed. Randy Jenkins, KA6BQF, national Radio Conference in Berlin No- Fundraising: Elisabeth and new member [email protected] vember 3rd 1906. This document shows Richard KI6RIQ are available, now, to work Vice Pres. & Public Service that the international distress signal up a fundraising backgrounder document Coordinator 510-526-4089 …---… ( generally, but not correctly re- and start targeting potential large donors. ferred to as SOS) was approved upon Our wish list for grant proposals and fund- Historybit. at this conference. Perhaps someone raising: Mountaintop equipment to support FYI: Arc transmitter efficiency was limited should advise the Halifax Chronicle Her- RACES, public service; building upgrade to by electron recombination time in the arc, ald about this fact. address seismic safety; bunk room and which is why they favored a hydrogen at- Regards Hans Chr./LA2EG shower for overnight emergency radio op- mosphere. Arc transmitters worked fine at ed. note: The international CW distress erators; replace comm unications truck. low frequencies, and struggled at 500 kc, signal is not really SOS because there are no Randy and Doug will come up with details. which was about the high frequency limit. normal character gaps between any of the Adjourned: 2038. Once struck, the arc was maintained, so dits and dahs. It could just as incorrectly be Respectfully submitted by they commonly used a shorted turn to shift called V7 or IAMS or 3B or whatever you Elisabeth Thomas-Matej KI6IMV, frequency for keying, thus originating can make out of that string of . - - - . Secretary "mark" and "space" frequencies. As Sandy It was sent as one continuous character.